India is a land where wonderful temples and monuments remind visitors about its rich traditions and cultural diversity. I believe that no trip to India can ever be complete without a visit to the Bahá'í House of Worship, also known as the Lotus Temple and it is this monument that I would advise a first time visitor to India, to discover. Located in New Delhi, the Lotus Temple is one of the most beautiful monuments of the Bahá'í faith built in 1986 by Fariborz Sahba.

The temple is designed in the shape of a half opened Lotus with 27 petals made of marble, each springing from a podium, which elevates the building above the surrounding plain. The nine ponds that surround the magnificent structure showcase the temple like a Lotus floating in water. The ‘Lotus’, the national flower of India, signifies the rich Indian culture and is symbolic of love, peace and purity. Thus, the temple magically combines traditional Indian culture with modern engineering techniques.

The Lotus Temple provides a perfect environment to meditate and gain wisdom. It conveys the teachings of the Bahá'í faith - the oneness of god, oneness of religions and oneness of mankind. I find it interesting that in this modern world, where society is divided on the basis of religion, race and caste and where terrorism has found a foothold, the Lotus Temple, the eternal monument of peace and unity is among the world’s most visited monuments, drawing visitors from all parts of the globe.

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...For many historians the effect of pollution on historical sites is a daily battle. Acid rain and smog eat into marble causing small holes in the stone. The Acropolis in Greece is one of main sites that is having this problem. All over the world buildings and historical sites are having problems with pollution and the growth of cities near the site. The Spinx is crumbling and through the centuries various repairs have been done to it, but that has only aided the damage from smog and traffic. The Roman Colosseum sits in the middle of a traffic circle in Rome. Repairs have been ongoing on the Colosseum and several sections have been rebuilt. In the United States civil war battle sites fight the growth of cities and malls. In some sites a malls form a boundary to the battle site. Natural forces also take their toll on historical sites. Mt. Rushmore is worked on because the granite cracks due to the snow, heat, rain, and pollution. Our national parks are dying because the trees are dying from drought, pollution, and insects. Once all of these things are gone they can not be replaced and hundreds if not thousands are in trouble because of pollution.
What are the effects of air pollution on historicalmonuments?
The main effect is the stone decay, which cam be divided into specific types of degradations:
- black crust ( the black layer on the surface of the stone) that can cause chemical reactions that...

...North, Central, & West India
BHIMBETKA (8000 B.C.)
The Bhimbetka rock are an archaeological World Heritage site located in Raisen District in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The Bhimbetka shelters exhibit the earliest traces of human life in India; a number of analyses suggest that at least some of these shelters were inhabited by man for in excess of 100,000 years. Some of the Stone Age rock paintings found among the Bhimbetka rock shelters are approximately 30,000 years old.
MAURYA and SHUNGA PERIOD (Central India, 3rd – 1st century BC)
1. Column of Heliodorus
The Heliodorus pillar is a stone column that was erected around 110 BCE in central India in Vidisha near modern Besnagar, by Heliodorus, a Greek ambassador of the Indo-Greek king Antialcidas to the court of the Sunga king Bhagabhadra. The site is located only 5 miles from the Buddhist stupa of Sanchi. The pillar was surmounted by a sculpture of Garuda and was apparently dedicated by Heliodorus to the god Vasudeva in front of the temple of Vasudeva.
2. Sanchi
Sanchi, variously known as Kakanaya, Kakanava, Kakanadabota and Bota-Sriparvata in ancient times, has a singular distinction of having remarkable specimen of Buddhist art and architecture right from the early Mauryan period. Sanchi is famous in the world for stupas, monolithic Asokan pillar, temples, monasteries and sculptural
wealth.Sanchi became a pilgrimage site when Ashoka Maurya...

...photographer who loves to visit temples and other historical places in India. Since web, is the universal media to which people around the globe either visit to gather knowledge or to keep in touch with their close friends and relatives, I would like to avail the power of web, by putting the photos of temples and other historical places of India.
Since web allows people to publish ideas and other useful information, I decided to flaunt my ability of photography by displaying photos of temples and other historical places of India. Since, a large population of Indian origin lives outside India, who may love to visit India but because of the unavailability of the resources (especially time) not able to visit the temples and other places of interest in India.
I hope that Sundar Palaniappan’s pages could serve as an alternative to quench the thirst (or form a base) of visiting these temples and other historical places of India. I basically visit these temples and historically important places on tight budget but spend lot of time there. Being a guy from a busy town of Chennai, Tamilnadu, India, these occasional tours, bring blissfulness to the mind and the soul.
Trekking adventure
Apart from being an aspiring photographer, Sundar Palaniappan loves to do trekking in the Himalayan Ranges and other...

...Historical Places in IndiaIndia is a land with a rich and varied history. Many different rulers, dynasties, and empires have fought over and controlled different parts of the Indian subcontinent during its eventful history. The various rulers and dynasties left behind their legacy in the form of grand monuments and buildings, in different historical places in India.
Most of India's cities have a history worth exploring, for the tales of the past are truly fascinating. The various monuments including palaces, forts, victory pillars and tombs in different historical places in India, tell glorious stories of India's fascinating history.
The capital city of Delhi was originally the capital of the Tomara clan in the 11th century A.D and later it became the capital of the Mughals. The city has some of the famous historicalmonuments; out of which some were built by the Mughals and the Britishers. Red Fort, Jama Masjid, Humayun's Tomb, Rashtrapati Bhawan, and Parliament House are the main monuments in Delhi, depicting its ancient history. Monuments of Prithviraj Chauhan, the Lodi Tombs, and the Siri Fort of Allauddin Khilji are some of the other monuments that you can see on your tour to Delhi.Neighboring Delhi is the city of Agra well known as the imperial capital of the Mughal...

...Research Paper: HistoricalMonument The Great Stupa’ at Sanchi
Ausbee B. Bryant III
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The Great Stupa’ at Sanchi is one of the most sophisticated and well known monuments of all time; the marvelous icon is considered to be a cornerstone of Buddhist art, architecture, and religion. It stands tall and holds a powerful presence that is very symptomatic of its historical context.
India is home to one the most symbolic and oldest stone structures known to man. This astonishing marvel was appointed to be built around 3rd century B.C by one of the most powerful and influential rulers of ancient India, Emperor Ashoka the Great.
Asoka was the emperor of the Maurya Dynasty and ruled the Indian subcontinent from ca. 269 BCE to 232 B.C and during his reign Ashoka converted to Buddhism and spread his Buddhist teachings through India, as well as having the great stupa erected to glorify and harbor the sacred Buddhist relics.
This incredible monument is majestic &amp; unique in more ways than one. It has been said that the structure symbolizes the world mountain and “despite having the most perfect and well-preserved stupa, Buddhist art and architecture, it’s also surrounded by numerous other stupas, pillars, temples and living quarters for monks, the greater part of which had been buried.”
Upon first recognition one could be lead to...

...for damage to historicalmonuments has already been realized. Some damage, such as from wind or rain, is unavoidable. However, pollution contributes additional risk factors that can increase the level of destruction. The effects may be minor, such as a blackening of the surface of monuments due to dust. Other impacts can have permanent consequences.
Significance
1. Pollution negatively impacts historicalmonuments and buildings around the world, from the Acropolis in Greece to the America's own Lincoln Memorial. The threat is in the risk of losing these irreplaceable structures forever. Many of these monuments have cultural and aesthetic value that is beyond price.
Acid Rain
2. One of the more destructive forms of pollution is acid rain. Acid rain occurs when fossil fuel emissions containing sulfur dioxide combine with moisture in the air to form acidic precipitation. When acid rain falls on historicalmonuments of limestone or marble, a chemical reaction takes place which has a corrosive effect on these structures. The reaction dissolves the material, leading to permanent damage.
Global Warming
3. According to the National Climatic Data Center, global temperatures have risen during the past century at a rate of 0.11 degrees Fahrenheit per decade. The concern with historicalmonuments lies in the...

...Bengal Legislative Council and inflicted defeats on three ministries. The Calcutta Municipal Act of 1923 was a major landmark in the history of local self-government in India. The Swarajists were elected to the Calcutta Corporation in a majority in 1924. Deshbandhu was elected mayor and Subash Chandra Bose was appointedChief Executive Officer. The leaders of Swaraj Party began to advocate fordominion status to India. Many of the elected deputies soon forgot about obstruction and began cooperating with the government (tariff autonomy bill passed, 1923). In 1924 Gandhi was released from prison due to poor health and was elected President of the Indian National Congress. 1925 saw the first woman becoming the president of Indian National Congress when Sarojini Naidu was elected President for the Kanpur session.
Revolutionary Movement in India during 1920s and 1930s
The revolutionaries in northern India organized under the leadership of the old veterans, Ramprasad Bismil, Jogesh Chatterjee, Chandrashekhar Azad and Sachindranath Sanyal whose ‘Bandi Jiwani’ served as a textbook to the revolutionary movement. They met in Kanpur in October 1924 and founded the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA) to organize armed revolution to overthrow colonial rule and establish in its place a Federal Republic of the United States of India.
Gopinath Saha in January 1924 tried to assassinate Charles Tegart, the hated...

...updated: April 22, 2010 Pollution's Impact on HistoricalMonuments Significance Pollution negatively impacts historicalmonuments and buildings around the world, from the Acropolis in Greece to the America' s own Lincoln Memorial. The threat is in the risk of losing these irreplaceable structures forever. Many of these monuments have cultural and aesthetic value that is beyond price. Acid Rain One of the more destructive forms of pollution is acid rain. Acid rain occurs when fossil fuel emissions containing sulfur dioxide combine with moisture in the air to form acidic precipitation. When acid rain falls on historicalmonuments of limestone or marble , a chemical reaction takes place which has a corrosive effect on these structures. The reaction dissolves the material, leading to permanent damage. Global Warming According to the National Climatic Data Center, global temperatures have risen during the past century at a rate of 0.11 degrees Fahrenheit per decade. The concern with historicalmonuments lies in the temperature impacts on the chemistry. Heat acts as a catalyst, speeding the rate of chemical reactions. The fate of historicalmonuments becomes more uncertain, and the urgency to take action increases. Global warming occurs when greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide trap radiant heat at the earth's surface, which...